Electric-arc lamp



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. J E GASTON ELECTRIC ARC LAMP.

No. 463,035. Patented Nov. 10,1891.

(No Modelff 3 sheetbsheen 2. J. E. GASTON.

ELECTRIC ARG LAMP. 'No. 463,035. Patented Nov. 10,1891.

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l! @www 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. J. E. GASTON.

ELECTRIC ARG LAMP.

Patented Nov. l0, 1891.

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(No Model.)

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

JAMES E. GASTON, OF SPARTA, ILLINOIS.

ELECTRIC-ARC LAMP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 463,035, dated November10, 1891.

Application filed January 15, 1891. Renewed October 17, 1891. Serial No,409,054. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, JAMES E. GASTON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Sparta, Randolph county, in the State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric-Arc Lamps forLocomotive Head-Lights, of which the following is such a full, clear,and. exact description as will enable any one skilled in the art towhich it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

The present invention is designed as an improvement on an apparatuspatented to me on July 10, 1888, by United States Letters Patent No.385,705.

The object of the invention is to render more certain and smooth theoperation of the aforesaid-patented apparatus and at the same time tosimplify the construction thereof.

The invention will be best understood by referring to the accompanyingd1awings,inak ing a part of this specification, in which drawing.

Figurel is afront elevation of my improved electric-arc lamp forlocomotive head-lights. Fig; 2 is a rear elevation thereof, theclockwork at the back of the apparatus being removed to more clearlyshow the construction. Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof. Fig. 4.- is an endView of the same, lookingfrom the left hand of Figs. 1 and 3 and theright hand of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is an end elevation taken at the oppositeend from Fig. 4, looking from the right hand of Figs. 1 and 3 and fromthe left hand of Fig. 2. Figs. o', 7, 8, and 9 are detail views, on anenlarged scale, of my iinproved carbon-holder, Fig. 7 being taken on theline 7 7 of Fig. 9, Fig. 8 being taken on the line 8 8 of Fig. 9, andFig. 9 on the line 9 9 of Fig. 6. Fig. 10 is a side elevation, on anenlarged scale, of my wheel and roller or shoe clutch for regulating thefeed of the carbons. Fig. 11 is a sectional elevation thereof on theline11 11 of Fig. 10. Figs. 12 and lo are views of details, Fig. 13 beingtaken on the line'lS 13 of Fig. 12. Fig. 14E is a side elevation, partlyin section, on an enlarged scale, of a cut-out for automaticallyswitching the lamp out of circuit under certain conditions. Figs. 15,16, and 17 are detail views, on a greatly enlarged scale, of thecarbon-supporting tube. Figs. 18 and 19 are views of modi- Iications.

2O is the positive carbon, and 2l the negative one, both of which areadapted to be secured to a carbon-holding device 22, consisting,preferably, of two semi-tubular jaws,one of which may be pivoted by apin 23 to a plug 24 in the interior thereof. Into the plug 21 passes ascrew-threaded rod 25, which carries a tapering plug or stopper 26intermediate of the screw-threaded portion and the extreme outer endthereof, which is fashioned to form a knob 27. Then the screw-threadedrod 25 is screwed into the block kor plug 21, the tapering plug orstopper 26 is drawn between the jaws of the carbon-holding device andforces the other end of the pivoted jaw of said device tightly againstthe carbon. By screwing the rod outward the pivoted jaw relaxes its holdupon the carbon and the carbon may be withdrawn from the holder. 'lhecarbons and the carbon-holders are adapted to slide in slotted tubes 28and 29, sustained by brackets 30 SO and 31 81, supported, respectively,by upright frame-plates 32 and 38, extending from the base 34 of thelamp or by any other suitable means. The carbon 20 and its carbon-holderis controlled, preferably, by a broad flat arm 85, which engages thecarbon-holder between the knob 27l and the plug or stopper 26. The otherend of the arm 35 is connected to mechanism, to be hereinafterdescribed, for moving the carbon back and forth to regulate the arc. Thecarbon 21 and its holder are controlled by a similar flat arm 3G in thesame way as the carbon 20 and its holder. The outer ends of the slottedtubes 28 and 29 are cut away, as shown in Figs. 2, 3, 15, and 17, sothat the arms 35 and 86 may readily be made to engage thecarbon-holders.

The arm 35 is connected to a rod 87, which has a rack 88 cut upon it.rlhe said rod slides in a slotted tube 39, supported at each end bybrackets Ll() and al, secured, respectively, to and insulated from theupright plates and 323 of the lamp. The arm 36 is connected to a rod 42and slides in a slotted tube 43, the same as the rod 37, and has a rack-11 upon it. The slotted tube 4S is sustained at each end by brackets 45and 46, extending from the brackets L10 and 11, respectively, previouslyreferred to. The slotted IOD tubes 39 and 43 are sustained intermediateof their ends by side plates a and b, extending` and insulated from thefront plates 32 and of the frame of the lamp and supported by thebase-plate 3e thereof. vThe side plates a and h are joined by a centralrear plate c, extending from the base 3i and forming a rev cess or nicheat front containing parts now to be described.

The rack 33 of the rod 37 engages with a spur-wheel 47, arranged upon ashaft 4S, which shaft has a tendency imparted to it to rotate in a givendirection by a clock-train 4,9, that need not be described in detail, itbeing substantially the same as other clockwork mechanism used for asimilar purpose. This shaft is journaled in the frameplate c andclock-frame. -Upon said shaft 48 is also a spur-wheel 50, at somedistance from the spur-wheel 47 and one-half the size thereof. Thisspur-wheel 50 meshes with the rack at on the sliding rod 42. Theclockwork mechanism, by the connections and gearing described, tends todrive the carbons in contact with each other an d feeds the positive`carbon through twice the distance that it does the negative carbon,owing to the fact that the spur-wheel 47, governing the feed of thepositive carbon, is twice as large as the spurwheel 50 controlling thefeed of the negative carbon.

Upon the shaft 48, controlled by the clocktrain, is a friction-wheel 5l.Adjacent to this wheel is a vertical swinging lever 52, carrying at itsupper end a brake-shoe 53, which normally bears on the periphery of thefriction-wheel 51. The swinging lever 52 has an elliptical bearing onthe hub 54 of the friction-wheel 5l, so as to give it play up and downin a vertical direction. Pivoted to this swinging lever 52 at 55 is abell-crank lever 56, carrying on the short arm thereof a fric- .tionroller or shoe 57, which is adapted to bear against the periphery of thefrictionwheel 5l.

The lower end of the bell-crank lever 5G is embraced betweenanti-friction rollers 5S 58, carried by horizontal bars 59 59 ofnon-magnetic material secured to the yoke-pieces (i0 and 6l of twooppositely-arranged magnets or solenoids, one of which 62 is arranged inthe circuit of the main line and the other 63 in sh unt-circuit. fromthe main line. These mag- 4 nets or solenoids are supported in anysuitable way from the base-plate 3a of the lamp and are arranged but aslight distance above said base-plate. The cores of the solenoids areadapted to run upon anti-friction rollers G4, suitably supported fromthe base-plate 34. Normally the clock-train forces the carbons incontact with each other, and when the current isturned on the largerpart thereof at first passes through the main coils G2 by way of thecontacting carbons. This draws the bars 59 toward the main-line magnetsor solenoids 62 and moves t-he bell-crank lever 56 in the direction ofthe dotted arrows shown at the lower part of Fig. 1l, so as to force thefriction roller or shoe 57 up against the friction-wheel 5l and gripsaid wheel tightly between the brake-shoe 53 and said roller or shoe 57..Further movement of the bars 59 in the direction of the main magnet (52will draw the bell-crank lever and the swinging lever 52 farther in thedirection of the dotted arrow at the lower part of Fig. 1l and slightlyrotate the f riction-wheel 5l in the direction of the dotted arrow insaid figure. This causes the carbons to separate, the movement being inthe reverse direction to that of the clock-train movement illustrated bythe arrows in full lines in Fig. ll. The arc having been drawn and thelight established, part of the current now passes through theshunt-coils and draws the bars 59 in the reverse direction. \Vhen thecarbons burn away, so as to make the arc too long` and increase theresistance in the main circuit, the major part of the current traversesthe shunt-coils and draws the bars 59 in the direction of theshunt-magnetl, which takes off the clutch from the frictionwheel 5l andallows the clock-train to feed the carbons. pends upon the regulatingeffect of the two oppositely-arranged solenoids in the shunt and maincircuit, controlling the frictionwheel 5l, either thereby restrainingthe tendency of the carbons to feed or permitting them to feed, ormoving the carbons from each other.

The swinging lever 52 has an adjustable stop 65 at the top of the lamp,carried by an arm 66, secured to a bracket 67, fastened to the frame ofthe machine, and is also provided with a second adjustable stop 63,secured to the frame of the lamp by a bracket f for limiting its play inthe other direction. The said swinging lever 52 is also furnished with aspring 69 for normally maintaining it in the required position. Thebell-crank lever 56 is provided with a spring 7 O for returning it toits original position. These springs G9 and 70 are secured to a suitablebracket (Z extending from the frame of the lamp.

Fastened to the movable bar 59 of the lamp is a spi ral spring 7l, theother end of which is secured to an adjusting-screw 72, carried by theyoke Gl of the shunt-magnets. The movable bar 59 is supported at thisend by a reduced part c, which is adapted to slide back and forththrough the yoke Gl and in the eX- tension 80, to be hereinafterdescribed. This spring acts independently of and in opposition to thesprings 69 and 70, before referred to, and returns the parts to andmaintains them in their normal positions.

The circuit enters the lamp by way of a binding-post 73, insulated fromthe base 34E of the lamp, and then proceeds direct to the main-linesolenoid G2, and thence it passes by a wire 74 to a binding-post 75 inelectrical communication with the carbon feeding-rod 37 and its slottedtube 39, whence the current is conducted by the arm 35 to The adjustmentof the arc de- TOO IIO

the carbon-holder` and carbon 20, passing ca the arc and the negativecarbon through the frame and base of the lamp to a bindingpost 76,whichis in electrical communication with the other terminal of the maincircuit. Itvwill be understood, of course, that the binding-post 75, theslotted tube 39, and parts connected therewith, are carefully insulatedfrom the frame of the lamp in order to prevent a short circuit. Aboutthe binding-post 7G is a spiral spring 77, that engages with a cut-outfinger 78, which,through the instrumentality of said spring, tends toseek contact with the binding-post 73, but is restrained therefrom by apivoted latch '7 9, against the other end of which is adapted to come anextension SO from the yoke of the shunt-solenoids 63. Should the arcbecome too long and the m echanism fail to act, the current will becaused to traverse the shunt-magnets and will cause the extension 8O tostrike against the pivoted latch 79 and let the contact-linger 78 comeagainst the binding-post 73, and thus cut the lamp out of circuit, thecurrent passing direct from the main line to the binding-post 73, andthence by way of the contact-finger 7 8 to the binding-post 76, which isin communication with the other terminal of the main line. rlhe cut-outdescribed is substantially similar to that set forth in my aforesaidpatent.

In Figs. 18 and 19 I showa modification of cut-out which is thepreferred form. In this modification there is a contact 81 secured tot-he moving bar 59, the free end of which comes opposite to a contact82, which is carefullyinsulatcd. The plate 8l is connected to oneterminal of the main line and the plate 82 t to the other terminal ofthe main line through a suitable resistance 83. In other words, thesecontacts are connected in a derived circuit of the necessary resistancefrom the main line. The normal position of parts is that represented inFig. 18. Should the arc become abnormally long and the mechanism fail tooperate from any cause, the contact 82 will be drawn by theshunt-magnets against the contact 81. The current will then traverse thecircuit named and the shuntcoils. When the carbons come together, thecontacts described will be shortcircuited and the current Will passthrough the main magnets ma the carbons, the shunt-magnet being alsoshort-circuited, so that it allows the spring 7l to draw the contact S2away from the contact 8l, and thus automatically cuts the lamp incircuit.

In the cutout previously described the lamp can only be put in circuitafter being automatically cut out by manually resetting the parts, butinthe cut-out last described the lamp is automatically cut out and incircuit1 Having fully set forth my improvements,

what I desire to claim, and secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates as my invention, 1s-

1. A carbon-holder for electric-arc lamps, consisting of twosemi-tubular jaws suitably pivoted intermediate of their ends to ablockwithin the interior thereof and adapted to receive the carbon at oneend, a screw-threaded rod carried by said block, and a tapering plugupon said rod extending from the other end of the device, whereby thecarbon may be gripped and released by turning said plug in one or theother direction.

2. The combination, in an electric-arc lamp adapted for a locomotivehead-light, of two substantially horizontally-arranged carbons, slottedretaining-tubes for supporting and guidin said carbons in said tubes, atubular carbon-holder for each carbon, consisting of two jaws suitablypivoted intermediate of theirends to a block within the interior thereofand adapted to receive the carbon at one end, a screw-threaded rodcarried by said block, and a tapering plug upon said rod extending fromthe other end of the device, a knob carried at the outer end of saidscrew-threaded rod, and a swinging arm resting between said plug andknob and connected with the mechanism of the lamp for regulating thearc.

3. The combination,in an electric-arc lamp, of a suitably-impelledshaft, mechanism controlled thereby for feeding the carbons or holdingthem in contact, a friction-disk carried by said shaft, aloosely-swinging vertical lever carrying a brake-shoe bearing on saidfriction-disk and hung about said shaft, a second lever pivoted to thefirst-mentioned lever and adapted to grip the friction-disk between itand the brake-shoe, a horizontal bar controlling the last-mentionedlever, and magnets governing said horizontal bar, substantially asdescribed.

4. The combinatiomin an electric-arc lamp adapted for a locomotivehead-light, of two oppositely-arranged solenoids in main and shuntcircuits, respectively, a horizontal bar between said solenoids, twohorizontally-arranged carbons, a clock-train for feeding the carbonstoward each other, and a brake mechanism consisting of vertical leverscontrolled by the movements of the aforesaid horizontal bar forrestraining such action and for separating or moving farther apart thecarbons to regulate the arc.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my seal,this 10th day of January, 1891, in the presence of the two subscribingwitnesses.

JAMES E. GASTON. [L s] Witnesses:

DANIEL P. BARKER, A. C. FOWLER.

